"Players have played in these conditions before, but I think it doesn't make it easy and it doesn't make it as enjoyable, for sure," said former Wales captain Gareth Bale, a DAZN commentator who attended the semifinals and final. "It's one of those things, and there's no real way around it."

At the 1994 World Cup in the US, just seven of 52 games had local nighttime starts, in order to ensure evening kickoff times for European broadcasts.

Missing champions

While FIFA hyped the tournament as a competition of the best teams in the world, it didn't include the current champions of England (Liverpool), Spain (Barcelona), Italy (Napoli) and Portugal (Sporting Lisbon) among the dozen European clubs participating. Instead of inviting the latest league winners, FIFA's rules based entry primarily on continental titles won over four years and ranking points, with some limits on clubs from the same nation.

Lionel Messi's Inter Miami got an invite even though it has never won the MLS title.

Player welfare

The Club World Cup means that the top players will likely face three consecutive years of summer tournaments, following the European Championship and Copa America last year and the World Cup in 2026.

Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola said the impact of the new tournament might not be known until midway through next season.

"I may say: 'So listen, we are a disaster. We are exhausted. The Club World Cup destroyed us,'" he admitted.

Bayern Munich and Germany star Jamal Musiala likely faces months out of action after sustaining a fractured fibula and broken and dislocated ankle in his team's quarterfinal loss to PSG.